


How Alex's life changed

by asongofshipsandfeels



Category: Percy Jackson and the Olympians & Related Fandoms - All Media Types, Percy Jackson and the Olympians - Rick Riordan
Genre: Asexual Character, Asexual Relationship, F/F, Lots of science because I'm a nerd, Science
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2014-11-24
Updated: 2014-11-24
Packaged: 2018-02-26 22:12:22
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,418
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/2668256
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/asongofshipsandfeels/pseuds/asongofshipsandfeels
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Alex is luckier than most of the population of the Earth, as she works in a job she actually likes thanks to her university doctorate. But her life will change completely when she meets a fascinating woman.</p>
            </blockquote>





	How Alex's life changed

**Author's Note:**

> Once I was talking with Xènia and we came up with this idea: If Athena is a virgin goddess and has 'brain children', why can't the other 'parent' be a woman? And then Xènia forced me to write this in exchange for a crappy drawing of Athena on a page of a torn hp book.
> 
> Thanks to Sarah for the beta :)
> 
> (I'll change the crappy title soon I promise I just couldn't think of anything)

At first Alex Miller didn't notice something had changed in the room, as she was too busy looking through the microscope at a petri dish with some bacteria on it. Swearing under her breath and muttering something about them growing too slowly, she picked the pen behind her ear and scribbled her observations in her notebook. Only then she looked up.

All around her her lab mates kept working: looking through other microscopes, typing in computers, carrying things, working with the bacteria... no one was still. It was a familiar and comforting sight, and Alex smiled.

Through a huge glass window at the end of the lab she could see the corridors of the offices, with more people doing their work, except one woman. She was completely still just behind the window, and her grey stormy eyes were looking directly at Alex. She didn't know how she could tell the colour of the woman's eyes from so far away, but she definitely could. In fact, they had been the first thing she had noticed about her. Apart from that, she had long straight black hair. Alex was always jealous of people with straight hair, as her own hair was a mess of blondish-brown curls that could never be controlled.

Alex felt a chill going down her spine, somehow that woman irradiated power. She was definitely beautiful, but also a bit of scary. Alex nodded in her direction and smiled, and as he was turning away she saw the woman was kind of smiling back.  
When she looked again the woman was gone, and Alex couldn't take that image out of her mind all day. The whole exchange had lasted maximum fifteen seconds, but Alex couldn't forget it.

.

Time passed, things happened and Alex finished that project without seeing the woman again.

Three weeks after the first glimpse she was doing a presentation of the finished project and its successful results in front of her boss and some other important people when she saw the woman at the back of the room. She was sitting on the last row of chairs, looking directly at her. That look made Alex shut up for a moment, there was something special on it. It was neither soft nor friendly, but there was a warm something in it. Alex felt like that woman knew everything about her life, both the good things and the mistakes, and didn't judge her.

But no, that was stupid, thought Alex as she tore her eyes apart. She had exchanged two looks with the woman and they had never talked, she could know nothing about her. Alex closed her eyes for a moment, breathed deeply and carried on with her presentation before no one from the first row could notice she had stopped.

.

The woman's visits kept becoming more and more frequent, but she was never there when Alex approached her and tried to talk. Somehow she always disappeared the moment Alex blinked or a person walked between them. Alex saw her from her car going to work, another time from the lab and across the park while she was playing with her two-years-old niece Marie.

.

When the weekend arrived Alex didn't think at all about the woman, as she was spending it with her family. Ugh. His cousin wanted to introduce them his fiancée, so all the family was meeting in her grandmother's huge house in the country. It was not that she didn't like her family, she really did love them. But it was exhausting being around so many people, and in some months she would be the only cousin who was still single.

“Alexandra, darling, when will we meet your future husband?” asked her grandma from behind the cup of tea. Obviously, those were the first words her grandma said to her, that woman was definitely deaf.

“Grandma, I won't have a husband, I've already told you,” Alex explained for like the thousandth time “I like women, not men.”  
“But my, that is not possible! How will you give me grandchildren then?”

At that moment Alex looked at her mother asking for help, but she only gave her the 'please be patient' stare.

“Grandma...” Alex rolled her eyes “I still can get pregnant. Not that I want to, but there are lots of ways. In vitro fertilisation, for example, and for centuries we have asked male friends for help.”

“Babies in tubes, that is disgusting! Science is ruining love...” her grandma said with a scowl, but Alex didn't bother answering. She wouldn't be able to change the old woman's opinion, she was too narrow-minded, but Alex wasn't going to let that ruin her weekend.

Instead, she turned to her cousin's fiancée, who was named Martha and was sitting next to her. She had heard she was an astrophysicist, and she was dying to ask her some questions (no, Alex couldn't make her inner science nerd shut up, not even on a weekend). At the end it turned out that they worked just two buildings away from each other, and they decided to meet up some time for a coffee and to talk some more.

.

Next Wednesday Alex saw the woman again and decided to approach her and talk to her, a little tired about all of that but curious at the same time. And instead of disappearing, this time the woman smiled and waited for her.

Alex joined the woman next to the park fountain, and talked first.

“I'm Alex, but you must already know that.” She had thought about her first words a lot, but she couldn't remember anything of what she had planned.

“Indeed I know, Alexandra. I'm Athena, and I'm really interested about your job. Would you mind to join me for a walk?”

“No, not at all,” Alex answered, and they started walking. She tried not to talk and let the woman start the conversation, but eventually she asked “Athena, uh? Like in Greek Mythology.”

“Yes, like in Greek Mythology,” The woman agreed. “What do you know about it?”

“Really few, just the high school stuff and then some things I read. But Athena has always been my favourite goddess.”

“Is that so?” Athena smiled.

“Yes, it is. You know, her being the goddess of wisdom and intelligence.”

“She's my favourite goddess too.” Athena smirked, like there was something funny about it.

“May I ask why you've been following me around?” Alex finally asked the question she had been dying to ask.

“You may.”

“Uh, okay...” Alex was a bit thrown back by that “Why have you been following me around?”

“Like I already told you, I'm really interested about your job. It's really interesting, and I would like to know more about it.”

“Well thank you, I appreciate your interest, but I can't tell you anything. You know, they could fire me.” As much as Alex felt she could trust the woman, she could be from a rival lab trying to figure out how far in the research they were “Sorry.”

“Do not worry, I appreciate your sincerity. We will meet again, Alexandra.” And with that, Athena stepped into a black car that was waiting for her, and left. The whole conversation left Alex speechless, wondering if it had been some kind of test to check if she could keep a secret. Shaking her head, she started walking back home.

.

“And that's it, she just got into the car and left. I couldn't say anything more.” Alex finished the story and took a sip of her coffee, looking at Martha. Her new friend was looking at her from across the table, eating cheesecake and sipping from her own coffee.

“Wow, that's really really weird...” she said with a low laugh “If it happened to me I would find it kinda creepy. You haven't seen her again since last Wednesday?”

“Nope, and it's been nearly a week...” Alex wouldn't admit that she missed seeing the woman. 'No, not the woman' she rephrased in her head. Now she had a name, even if she didn't know if it was real: Athena. “Anyway, let's stop talking about me. Do you have a date for the wedding?”

“Oh no, not yet.” Martha looked down at the ring on her finger and smiled “It's only been two weeks. But we'll set it soon, we are both thinking about a spring wedding...”

“That would be really nice! A garden with lots of flowers would be pretty.”

“Yeah! This is our idea too. Definitely not a church, although your grandma will insist on it.”

“Maybe she even has a stroke when you tell her you won't get married in a church. But don't worry about her.” Alex grinned.

.

“Why did you ask me about my work?” Alex asked Athena next day when she saw her. She was sure the woman had been waiting for her, right next to the machine where she bought coffee every day during her 11 o'clock break. “Though you do not appear in the employees database, you seem to have no problem walking around and going to work presentations. If you wanted to know, you would already know.”

“Straight and forward, I appreciate that.” Athena kind of smiled “You are correct. While I think your work is interesting, I already know about it. The fact is that I enjoy listening to people talk about their preferred subject, especially intelligent people.”

“Thanks.” Alex hadn't missed the compliment, even if told in that rather strict tone “Can I buy you a coffee?” She pointed to the machine.

“No thank you.” Athena grimaced “I have never enjoyed that particular beverage. We will see each other soon Alexandra, if you would like that?”

“Yeah!” Alex's eyes brightened, but she quickly composed herself “I mean yes, I'd like that. I have to return to work now, see you!” Alex threw the plastic vase in a bin and walked away.

.

Things continued like that for a while, Athena randomly appearing and them having a nice chat. Then they started meeting periodically: every Friday afternoon next to the park fountain they talked with each other for the first time, while Alex drank some coffee and Athena some tea.

Soon, Alex started looking forward to their little meetings, as she enjoyed a lot their conversations. Athena was intelligent, and apparently she knew of every subject: science, technology, architecture, even literature! She even once mentioned being able to knit and things like that, at which Alex was completely useless.

.

One day, Alex woke up from a particularly good dream involving her and Athena and realized something: she had fallen in love with her. One of the things that gave it away was that although she had always hated her full name when she had been little, she loved how the woman always called her 'Alexandra'.

She asked her about this the next time they met, next Friday next to the park fountain.

“I have one question. Why do you always call me 'Alexandra'? Everyone else calls me 'Alex', it's shorter.”

“I happen to like your name, Alexandra.” Athena locked eyes with her, like she was looking for something there and smiled pleased when she found it “You have a name that talks about strength, and I have noticed that is true. Do you dislike it?”

“No!” Alex could feel her cheeks reddening “I mean, I don't usually like it, but I like it when you say it.”

“Then we are set on that.” Athena smiled, but then suddenly stood up and her face became serious “I'm sorry, my dear Alexandra. There's and urgent family affair that calls for my attention, I have to leave you here.”

“Don't worry, Athena.” Alex was a little disappointed, but she understood the woman had a life. It had been the first time Athena had mentioned a family and Alex was curious, but she didn't ask. “See you soon?”

“Hopefully. Have a nice weekend.” And with that she strode to the park gates, where a grey car was waiting for her.

.

It was Thursday, it had been a long and frustrating week of work, and the only thing Alex wanted was to get home, sit on the sofa and watch some crap telly while eating Chinese takeaway. Well that, and next day's afternoon meeting with Athena.  
She entered the parking left her car and walked up the stairs. She was about to enter the elevator when she noticed something in her post box.

“What is this?” she muttered, picking an expensive-looking envelope with her address written in elegant handwriting. At the top of the envelope there was a logo with a stick and two snakes around it, and three words: ‘Hermes’ mail services’. She was about to open it, but then the elevator arrived and she pocketed the letter to go up.

It was not until an hour later that Alex remembered the weird envelope. She picked it from her jacket's pocket and sat back on the sofa while opening it. Inside there was a letter written in the same elegant handwriting.

'Dear Alexandra,  
I'm afraid the family affair I mentioned is taking longer than I had expected, and I will not be able to come to our meeting tomorrow.  
My apologies,  
Athena.'

Something cracked in Alex's heart, and she realized about how much she had come to rely on their weekly meetings to relieve the week's stress and start the weekend in a good way. But there was nothing she could do about it, so she switched off the tv and went to sleep.

.

Next Tuesday at 11:05 Alex exited her office, where she had been typing some results into the computer, and dragged herself to the coffee machine. Last night she had slept really badly, and she was exhausted, but she quickly stood straight when she saw Athena next to the saviour machine.

“Athena! Hey!” She smiled, pleased to see her.

“Hello, Alexandra.” Athena smiled too, her smile a little broader than usually. “I apologize for last Friday.”

“Don't mention it.” Alex was about to insert the coins into the coffee machine, but then had an idea “Do you want to go to the cafeteria? I need a decent cup of coffee, not this shit.”

“It is a fantastic idea.” Athena smiled again. 'Wow,' Alex thought. 'Two smiles in less than five minutes, that's kind of a record'. “Although I will never understand your fascination for that beverage.”

At that Alex laughed, and together they walked to the cafeteria to have a nice chat.


End file.
